Hamilton County mayoral candidate Weston Wamp, in an opinion column this week, defended his stance on former President Donald Trump and lamented what he called “divisive national issues” that have entered the race. Wamp expressed these sentiments in a letter to The Chattanoogan.
Read the full story
The Nashville-based pet food Nom Nom has been acquired by Mars Inc. Bloomberg reported this month that Nom Nom will serve as an autonomous brand within Mars’ Royal Canin division.
Read the full story
Georgia gubernatorial candidate David Perdue on Thursday proposed creating what he called an Election Law Enforcement Division that would investigate alleged violations of the state’s election laws. Perdue, in a statement, said Election Law Enforcement Division officers would have the authority to make arrests.
Read the full story
Fulton County Commissioners discussed Wednesday whether to extend a contract to the controversial Happy Faces staffing firm, but the discussion irked Commissioner Marvin Arrington Jr. to such an extent he erupted in a fit of anger. And the longer Arrington spoke the louder and the more antagonized he got — especially when he talked about former President Donald Trump.
Read the full story
U.S. District Judge Waverly Crenshaw this month said that Tennessee Department of Health (TDOH) Commissioner Lisa Piercey and TDOH Chief Medical Officer Tim Jones have qualified immunity against claims from former TDOH official Michelle Fiscus. Qualified immunity protects a government official from lawsuits alleging that the official violated a plaintiff’s rights.
Read the full story
Fulton County commissioners on Wednesday voted four to three to extend the contract with Happy Faces, a staffing firm said to have ties to Stacey Abrams. Commissioners voted this way, despite several people turning out to protest Happy Faces and any possible contract extension. To express their displeasure with Happy Faces, those audience members held up with signs and buttons with a crossed-out smiley face.
Read the full story
Representative Barry Loudermilk (R-GA-11), during a speech late last week about Democrats’ attempts to pass a federal takeover of elections, said that the party wants to create “a homogenous society that is easily controlled.” Loudermilk said this on the floor of the House of Representatives.
Read the full story
Senator Butch Miller (R-Gainesville) has proposed amending the Georgia Constitution to give each resident of a school district the right to claim an ad valorem tax exemption for school district taxes under certain circumstances. This, assuming the State Board of Education declares that the school district in question “has substantially deviated from the board’s approved course curriculum.”
Read the full story
Members of The Tennessee Trucking Association are scheduled to deliver a presentation before the State Senate Transportation and Safety Committee on Wednesday morning. Staff for various members of the committee, including Chair Becky Duncan Massey (R-Knoxville) told The Tennessee Star on Tuesday that even they didn’t know what, specifically, members of The Tennessee Trucking Association plan to discuss. Members of the Tennessee Trucking Association did not return our requests for comment on Tuesday.
Read the full story
Members of the Tennessee Senate Education Committee are scheduled to consider a bill this week that would, if enacted into law, expand Educational Savings Accounts, also known as ESAs. Senator Mike Bell (R-Riceville) said Monday that at least one school district in Tennessee, in Collierville, moved students to remote learning this month, as Chalkbeat Tennessee reported.
Read the full story
The district attorney for Georgia’s Western Judicial Circuit last month compared her constituents in Oconee County to white supremacists, and she said they wish to do her harm. That woman, Deborah Gonzalez, represents a district that includes not only Oconee but Athens-Clarke counties. Athens-Clarke County’s political climate is strongly liberal. Oconee County’s political climate, meanwhile, is very conservative, according to BestPlaces.net
Read the full story
The political future of Senator Katrina Robinson (D-Memphis) is up in the air. This, after federal jurors in October convicted Robinson of four of five counts of wire fraud. Court officials are scheduled to sentence her next month, according to the Memphis-based Action News 5.
Read the full story
Federal officials have sentenced a Jefferson County, Georgia woman to prison after she admitted she lied to obtain $150,000 in COVID-19 relief funding to spend on a vacation to Miami. That woman, Whitney Adwan Mack, 34, of Louisville, pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and will serve 48 months in prison.
Read the full story
Georgia Lieutenant Governor Geoff Duncan (R-Cumming) this week assigned the legislation that could help Buckhead incorporate into its own city to a senate committee seated entirely by Democrats. Duncan did not return The Georgia Star News’ repeated requests for comment this week.
Read the full story
Officials with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee have sentenced a Knoxville man to life plus 10 years in prison. Judge Thomas A. Varlan sentenced that man, Alim J. Turner, 23 last week.
Read the full story
Declared Georgia lieutenant gubernatorial candidate Burt Jones on Friday said his campaign has raised $3.75 million for this fundraising period. Senator Jones (R-Jackson) received former U.S. President Donald Trump’s endorsement last September.
Read the full story
FRANKLIN, Tennessee — Three days before the federal Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, Ben Carson traveled to Williamson County to tell a packed audience that Critical Race Theory (CRT) defies the teachings of the late civil rights activist. Carson, the former U.S. secretary of Housing and Urban Development, spoke at The Factory in Franklin, only a few miles away from the Williamson County School System’s (WCS’s) main office. Several frustrated parents have long said that the WCS continues to teach CRT, against those parents’ wishes.
Read the full story
Between July 2020 and June of last year, more than 650 people tipped of Tennessee Comptrollers to various and alleged instances of waste, fraud, and abuse in local, state, and federal government agencies. And Comptrollers said they acted on those tips and learned several contained substantive allegations.
Read the full story
State Representative Brad Thomas (R-Holly Springs) on Thursday filed a bill that he said would, if enacted into law, prohibit Georgia public school officials from teaching Critical Race Theory (CRT) and the 1619 Project. Thomas did not return The Georgia Star News’ request for an interview Thursday. He said in an emailed press release that his bill, HB 888, “would prohibit curriculum that could be considered discriminatory on the basis of race from being taught in public schools.” HB 888 also includes a transparency requirement that would allow all parents to view the educational materials given to Georgia students.
Read the full story
Governor Brian Kemp delivered his year State of the State address Thursday, where he announced his policy priorities for the 2022 session of the Georgia General Assembly, and they include reducing crime and reforming public education “From the classroom to the ball field, there are those who want to divide our kids along political lines, push partisan agendas, and indoctrinate students from all walks of life. This is wrong, it’s dangerous, and as long as I’m governor, it will not take root in Georgia,” Kemp said.
Read the full story
Weston Wamp, son of former Tennessee Republican Congressman Zach Wamp, is running for mayor of Hamilton County, and his past tweets reveal an intense dislike and even a resistance to former President Donald Trump. In more than one tweet, Weston Wamp denied that Trump is a conservative. In another post, Wamp warned that Trump, as president, would likely derail the national economy and spark a recession. In another post, Wamp predicted that the former president would demolish the Republican Party.
Read the full story
Staff members for Georgia’s attorney general and secretary of state this week declined to respond to Vernon Jones call for the feds – and not state officials – to investigate new claims of ballot harvesting in 2020. Staff for Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger declined The Georgia Star News’ requests for comment.
Read the full story
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp is scheduled to deliver his 2022 State of the State address Thursday. Kemp is up for reelection this year.
Read the full story
Tennessee state officials took charge of four Memphis schools a decade ago that struggled academically, and those same state officials hoped to perform better than the local school systems had. But that did not happen.
Read the full story
Georgia State Representative Josh Bonner (R-Fayetteville) said this week that University System of Georgia officials oppose a bill he’s submitted that would, if enacted into law, bestow students with greater First Amendment rights. “The [University System of Georgia] officials are very opposed to it,” Bonner told The Georgia Star News.
Read the full story
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger on Tuesday called for a nationwide ban on ballot harvesting. Ballot harvesting permits private individuals to collect other voters’ ballots and then submit those ballots to various polling stations.
Read the full story
Maury County Mayor Andy Ogles on Monday delivered a bold and unconventional message not only to his employees but also to Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) bureaucrats concerning that agency’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate. Ogles said that the county will not submit.
Read the full story
Weston Wamp, son of former Tennessee Republican Congressman Zach Wamp, is running for mayor of Hamilton County, and he said Monday he is not his father concerning the latter’s views on former U.S. President Donald Trump.
This, after The Tennessee Star asked Weston Wamp one question about his father and another question concerning Trump.
Read the full story
Republicans in the Tennessee General Assembly will reportedly create multiple congressional districts to represent Nashville, and this move will likely benefit the GOP. This, as state legislators redraw new Congressional maps to comply with required redistricting.
Read the full story
Former Republican senator and current Georgia gubernatorial candidate David Perdue on Monday published a Georgia Parents’ Bill of Rights that he said protects children from overzealous school administrators. Perdue’s proposal borrows from federal legislation that U.S. Senator Josh Hawley(R-MO) proposed last year.
Read the full story
Tennessee Stands members have announced that they will bring back their Freedom Matters Tour later this month in the Chattanooga area. Organizers have scheduled the event from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. ET, January 18, at The Vineyard at Howe Farms, located at 7600 Runyan Road in Georgetown, Tennessee.
Read the full story
Members of the Georgia House Republican Caucus have elected State Representative Bonnie Rich (R-Suwanee) as their new House Majority Caucus Chair for the remainder of the 2021-2022 legislative term. Georgia House Republican Caucus members announced the news this week.
Read the full story
Former Tennessee Republican Congressman Zach Wamp’s daughter, Coty Wamp, is accused of witness tampering and obstruction of justice, and one Hamilton County official wants the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) to review the matter. This, according to the Chattanooga-based WRCBtv.
Read the full story
Georgia gubernatorial candidate David Perdue said a new state law gives Governor Brian Kemp a significant financial advantage as he seeks reelection, and this week Perdue filed suit to challenge that law’s constitutionality. In his lawsuit, Perdue, a former Republican U.S. senator, cited Senate Bill 221. The bill became law in July of last year, according to the Georgia General Assembly’s website.
Read the full story
Staff for Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens and the Atlanta Police Department (APD) accused Buckhead City Committee leader Bill White of misinforming the public about alleged corruption and mismanagement practices within their agencies. White told The Georgia Star News on Friday that several APD sources feed him information and that those sources are reliable. White said he knows those sources’ identifies, but he will keep them anonymous.
Read the full story
Members of the University of Memphis’ Turning Point USA (TPUSA) chapter spoke out Friday against their school’s intentions to use classrooms as pulpits that promote the tenets of social justice. Three University of Memphis TPUSA students declared their intentions as they appeared on a TPUSA Live video.
Read the full story
A member of Americans for Prosperity – Tennessee (AFP-TN) said this week that his organization assists frustrated right-of-center Tennesseans who want to influence state legislators and how they vote. AFP-TN spokesman Grant Henry spoke with The Tennessee Star this week.
Read the full story
Federal officials gave convicted Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev a COVID-19 relief payment of $1,400 last year, and Georgia’s two U.S. senators helped defeat an amendment to a bill that would have prevented that from happening. Massachusetts prosecutors said in a court filing Wednesday that Tsarnaev received this taxpayer money in June 2021.
Read the full story
Williamson County Mayor Rogers Anderson on Wednesday announced that he will seek re-election this year. This, after Anderson said in an emailed press release that he had picked up a petition to run for re-election. He said he collected the necessary signatures to qualify for another term as mayor.
Read the full story
ATLANTA, Georgia – Republican and declared Georgia gubernatorial candidate Vernon Jones on Wednesday called on the federal government – and not State Attorney General Chris Carr – to investigate new claims of ballot harvesting during the 2020 election. This, even though Jones and others allege that certain, unnamed individuals in Georgia broke state laws – and not federal ones.
Read the full story
Salon this week identified former Republican senator and current Georgia gubernatorial candidate David Perdue as one of the nation’s 10 “scariest Republican candidates of 2022.” The Georgia Star News asked Perdue spokeswoman Jenni Sweat on Tuesday whether that article signals that the left takes Perdue’s candidacy seriously and outright fears he’ll defeat incumbent Republican Governor Brian Kemp later this year.
Read the full story
A bill making its way through the Tennessee General Assembly would, if enacted into law, force local government officials to show homeowners exactly how much a property tax increase would take out of their bank accounts. Americans for Prosperity -Tennessee (AFP-TN) spokesman Grant Henry on Tuesday identified this legislation by two different names: Stop Surprise Taxes or Truth in Advertising.
Read the full story
A spokeswoman for former Republican senator and Georgia gubernatorial candidate David Perdue said Monday that the candidate wants a Parents’ Bill of Rights. This, after Atlanta Public School (APS) officials announced Saturday that they will operate virtually this week for all students and all staff. APS officials said the district’s most recent COVID-19 data prompted the decision.
Read the full story
University of Memphis officials have offered a $3,000 stipend to professors to redesign existing courses to promote the tenets of social justice. This, as part of the university’s Eradicating Systemic Racism and Promoting Social Justice Initiative.
Read the full story
The Virginia-based Campus Reform late last week called out the Atlanta-based Georgia State University (GSU) for using bias reporting tools that enable students, faculty, and staff to report on one another for alleged acts of discrimination. Campus Reform, according to its website, is conservative and monitors the nation’s higher education system.
Read the full story
U.S. Representative Tim Burchett (R-TN-02) said late last month that he wonders whether certain aspects of inflation haven’t happened by design, as a means of pushing the United States closer to socialism. Burchett said this on the talk show, Over-Caffeinated.
Read the full story
Atlanta Public School (APS) officials announced Saturday that will operate virtually next week for all students and all staff. This, after APS officials said they had reviewed district and community COVID-19 data. They did not elaborate.
Read the full story
Officials with the Metro Nashville Social Services and the Nashville-based Room in the Inn announced Saturday that, after the many impacts of COVID-19, faith-based groups will return to the city’s Cold Weather Shelter Plan. Before COVID-19, Metro Nashville and Room in the Inn officials had relied on more than 200 faith centers to help house the homeless during the winter months. As a result, far fewer homeless people could access shelter when temperatures dropped below 28 degrees. Exactly 60 fair centers coordinated with the city last year.
Read the full story
Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) officials this week announced they are allocating Merck and Pfizer oral antiviral treatments for COVID-19 to select retail pharmacies throughout the state. “Initial supply of Molnupiravir and PaxlovidTM from the federal government is very limited. DPH anticipates additional allocations in the coming weeks as production increases,” according to a DPH press release.
Read the full story
Tennessee Department of Health (TDH) officials this week announced they have received shipments of the Merck and Pfizer oral antiviral treatments for COVID-19. “The Tennessee Department of Health coordinated a distribution plan of molnupiravir and Paxlovid with Walmart pharmacies across the state,” according to a TDH press release.
Read the full story